Chapter 38
I Want to Be an Extra in This Drama (2)
“Coco!”
“My lady, my lord—what brings you both here…?”
It was unusual for either of them to come in person. Normally, when the Marquis or Lady Chiara summoned me, I went to them. Startled, I quickly stood to greet the two as they stepped into my small office.
“The final interview’s over,” Lady Chiara said brightly. “Father wanted to give you a message.”
“I see. Did the interview go well?”
The Marquis smiled faintly and nodded.
“Thanks to my daughter, we chose a diligent and clever one. I can’t believe I never realized how sharp she truly is.”
“Oh, Father, you were the only one who didn’t.”
“Haha, then I’ll have to start learning more about her, won’t I?”
Before the two could drift off into their father-daughter world again, I quickly steered the topic back on track.
“You mentioned you had something to tell me?”
“Ah, yes. Nathan wants to see you. He asked that you stop by the Ministry of Finance for a moment.”
“The Minister of Finance?”
I tilted my head. My errands for the Marquis were already done, and there wasn’t much reason for the Minister to ask for me directly. What could it be about?
Especially since, after that last incident, he had told me not to visit the palace too often.
“It’s nothing serious,” the Marquis said. “Just go and hear him out.”
“You’ve been busy lately helping both of us,” Lady Chiara added. “And you, of all people, hate working late—yet you’ve been staying until nightfall.”
Well, I was getting paid accordingly, so that was fine by me.
“The new aide’s been chosen, so after you stop by the palace, go straight home. Don’t stay late.”
As expected of Lady Chiara—her sense is impeccable!
Unable to hide my grin, I gleefully packed my things.
Then Lady Chiara suddenly grabbed my cheeks and stretched them with a playful tug.
“M–My ladyyy…”
“Sorry, I couldn’t help it—you’re just too cute! But don’t smile like that out in public, alright? Especially not in front of Lady Seref.”
“Yes, ma’am…”
Why would he call for me?
I pondered the Minister’s reason as the carriage rattled along.
Could it be something to do with that incident? Or perhaps… did he want to ask more about the two of them?
That seemed more likely. But honestly, I’d only witnessed them together twice—there wasn’t much else to tell.
Then again… maybe the Minister learned something new himself.
Given his position, his information network must be quite powerful. I wished he’d hurry up and spread those rumors already.
Anyway, I’d find out soon enough. The Marquis had said it wasn’t anything serious, so I wasn’t too worried.
Before long, the carriage stopped, and I climbed the stairs toward the Ministry of Finance on the third floor.
I had just reached the second landing when—
Wham!
“Ah! Who—huh?”
Someone shoved me hard from behind.
Without so much as an apology, the man strode quickly past me down the hall. I was about to curse under my breath when I noticed where he was headed—
“The Chancellor’s Office…”
Wait a second. That man—he was the same one who had stood beside the Duchess of Seref at the Marquis’s launch party.
Which meant…
The Duke of Seref?
Just as the realization hit me—
Crash!
“Kyaaa!”
A shriek split the air.
As the Chancellor’s door burst open, a chaotic scene unfolded before my eyes. Shattered ornaments, torn documents, and utter destruction filled the room.
“D–Duke of Seref!”
“You bastard! You dare meet my wife in secret?!”
Gasps rippled through the office.
Chancellor Marcus looked completely flustered, desperately trying to calm the enraged Duke.
“P–please, calm yourself—”
“Calm? You dare tell me to calm down?”
“Y–Your Grace, please remember your dignity—”
“There will never be another day as disgraceful as this one. If you die, I die with you!”
With that, the Duke’s fist slammed into Marcus’s face.
Thud!
I clapped a hand over my mouth.
Is this real life?
I was watching an actual love scandal brawl unfold right in the middle of the Chancellor’s office.
The elegant, noble Duke of Seref I’d only heard about in gossip was nowhere to be seen. Instead, a furious man—fists flying—was pummeling the thin, scholarly Chancellor who looked like he’d spent his life buried in books.
“You think you can still show your face in Lecera after what you’ve done?!”
“Ugh—stop! Stop this madness!”
“Stop? You dare seduce the Duchess of Seref and call that nothing?!”
“Don’t you pin this all on me!”
“What?!”
The Chancellor, face swollen and bloodied, spat out the words defiantly.
“She said she liked me too! Maybe you should’ve taken better care of your wife!”
“What!”
The Duke’s eyes went bloodshot as he lunged again, fists swinging. Marcus kicked and struggled, clawing back wherever he could.
The Duke’s aide came rushing in, trying to restrain him, and only then did the Chancellor’s clerks scramble to pull the two apart—arms and legs flailing as they tried to keep them separated.
“Let go of me! I said let go!”
“How could you disgrace yourself like this inside the palace, Your Grace?!”
“Disgrace? Compared to what he did, I’m practically a saint!”
I couldn’t tear my eyes away. I’d heard about office fights before, but I’d never actually seen one break out like this.
Please, don’t let this drama end.
“Enjoying the show?”
“Ah!”
I nearly jumped out of my skin.
Behind me stood the Minister of Finance, hands clasped behind his back, watching the chaos with a serene smile.
“If you’re done watching, let’s head upstairs.”
I reluctantly tore my gaze away from the unfolding soap opera and followed him.
Even after I sat down in his office, the image of that outrageous scene still replayed in my head.
“Quite an entertaining sight, wasn’t it?”
The Minister looked far too pleased. Now that I thought about it, he hadn’t even looked surprised back there.
Wait… could it be—
“I didn’t expect the Duke to storm the Chancellor’s Office himself,” he said casually.
He wasn’t even trying to hide it.
“You… you planned this, didn’t you?”
“Let’s just say my sense of justice refused to stay quiet.”
He hummed as he poured tea, looking absurdly cheerful. The tea set and sweets on the table even seemed fancier than usual.
“I didn’t think things would escalate this far,” I said carefully.
All I’d wanted was for a little rumor to spread—enough to make the Duchess squirm in embarrassment.
“The timing was perfect,” he replied lightly. “That arrogant Duchess has been throwing her weight around for too long. It was about time she fell from her pedestal. I simply… used a few hints that came my way.”
So he really did it.
Was this because of what the Duchess had done to me before?
Before I could decide whether to ask, he spoke again.
“I was indeed angry at her behavior—it was hardly fitting for a noblewoman. But I wouldn’t go to such lengths over an insult that wasn’t even directed at me. I’m a practical man, you see.”
That reminded me of how Chancellor Marcus had once ignored the Minister’s greeting.
“So… the real target was the Chancellor.”
The Minister smiled faintly.
“Clever girl.”
He suddenly seemed different—colder, sharper, more calculating than the kind and easygoing man I’d thought I knew.
“You’re… quite frightening, Minister.”
“I’m only as kind as people are competent. As long as you do your work, I’m endlessly generous. Disappointed?”
Not really. If anything, this was just realistic. We weren’t close enough for me to expect anything else. I shrugged lightly.
“Not particularly.”
He looked a little surprised.
“Well now, perhaps I underestimated you. I was about to make a long-winded excuse just in case you resented me.”
“I don’t need to know what’s between you and the Chancellor,” I said evenly. “But as your informant, I would like to know what you think will happen next.”
“Next, hmm…”
He took a slow sip of tea before answering.
“The Duke may be proud, but he values face and honor above all else. Whether he truly loved his wife, I can’t say—but he’ll see this affair as an unforgivable humiliation. The moment I leaked the information, he stormed straight to the Chancellor’s office.”
That scene of him throwing his fist across Marcus’s face would be hard to forget.
“When I looked into it after hearing from you, it turned out the two had been entangled for quite some time. People knew, but stayed silent—afraid of being caught up in scandal. What began as a discreet affair grew bolder over time, until even you spotted them. The Duke won’t let this slide.”
“Will he… divorce her?”
“If it ends with that, they’ll be lucky. Like I said, the Duke is a man of honor—and he’s relentless. The Empire may quietly tolerate mistresses, but adultery remains a crime. After that public brawl in the Chancellor’s Office, there’s no way it’ll be swept under the rug. There will be a trial, then divorce. The Duchess’s reputation will be ruined—completely. And the Marquis’s household won’t escape the fallout either.”
“Will the Marquis divorce as well?”
“Hard to say. In this Empire, only those who can afford to divorce do so. Marquis Bain’s wife came from a humble family—if they split, her family would struggle to survive. It’s possible she already suspects the truth.”
“That does sound plausible.”
Women’s intuition often pierced deeper than logic. Perhaps she had simply chosen not to acknowledge it.
“And as for Marcus—there’s no way he’ll marry the disgraced Duchess.”
“The same goes for her, I imagine.”
“I’d say so. Besides, do you think that relationship could last after losing everything? They were too distracted by each other to even do their jobs properly.”
I couldn’t help but wonder—when the once-proud Duchess was stripped of her title, would she still have that same arrogance she used to throw at everyone else?
Probably not.
“For now,” the Minister said with a sly grin, “the palace will be busy cleaning up the mess. And soon… so will you.”
He smiled in that infuriatingly knowing way—leaving me both curious and uneasy about what was to come.
